After a whirlwind couple of months, and with Passover just a few days away, it is a good time to catch our breaths and reflect on what has recently transpired and on how quickly events are developing. Here is just a smattering of recent current events:
- Donald Trump won the presidency.
- Many in the US including much of the mainstream media have not come to grips with the fact of #1 above and continue to rally and plot against him.
- Accusations by Trump of the prior administration’s spying on him and his team has sent shock waves throughout Washington and the country.
- President Trump has signed numerous executive orders, upending President Obama’s legacy.
- The Keystone pipeline will move forward.
- The Republicans have so far not been able to come up with a satisfactory program for the repeal and replacement of Obamacare.
- Trump is moving forward with plans for a “wall” on the country’s southern border; in the meantime the number of illegal aliens entering the US has fallen drastically as the new administration talks tough.
- Neil Gorsuch was confirmed as Justice of the Supreme Court today.
- Trump may have taken a step back from established US policy, stating that he would be satisfied with whatever solution Israel and the “Palestinians” accept, not necessarily a “two-state solution.” Additionally, he is hoping to convene a Middle East “peace” conference in the near future. Many in Israel are perplexed at his push for a Middle East deal now, when there are so many more urgent issues to deal with.
- Against the hopes and expectations of many in Israel, Trump has not given Israel carte blanche for building in Judea and Samaria, nor has he initiated moving the US embassy to Jerusalem.
- There is increasing open acknowledgement of an informal alliance between Israel and a number of Sunni nations, all aligned against the Iranian threat.
- Islamic terrorists are continuing their campaign of terror in Israel, Europe, Russia and elsewhere around the world.
- Muslim population growth continues to outstrip native European growth, presenting a major threat to Europe’s security and traditions. In many cities across the continent, churches are being shuttered and are being replaced by mosques.
- The new US Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, has taken an aggressive approach toward asserting US leadership and backing Israel on the world stage.
- Anti-Semitism in the US is a major concern, even with the surprise arrest of an American-Israeli youth charged with making hundreds of bomb threats to Jewish institutions throughout the US and elsewhere.
- The war in Syria just got hotter as the US bombed a Syrian military base after Syria used chemical weapons against its own population earlier this week.
We enter this Spring season and the holiday of Passover and soon after, Easter, cognizant of the problems being faced. However, we look forward with optimism that the US is regaining its place of leadership in the world, and that Israel will continue to be strong and secure in a sea of madness.
Happy Passover!